Remkes vaulting towards National Championships

GYMNASTICS: Gymnastics Australia had the opportunity to speak with an in-form Chris Remkes, as the Men’s Artistic Gymnastics (MAG) athlete targets more success at the upcoming Australian Gymnastics Championships in Melbourne.

At the recent World Cup event in Azerbaijan, Remkes secured the gold medal in Vault, off the back of silver in front of a home crowd at the Melbourne World Cup earlier in the year.

Along with a silver from Doha in 2016, these results have the Philippines-born gymnast currently sitting atop the table in the International Gymnastics Federation’s (FIG) Individual Apparatus World Rankings on Vault.

“It’s honestly an amazing feeling to know that all the hard work put in has paid off,” Remkes said about his top world ranking.

“I want to keep pushing myself to do better; I’m satisfied with my achievements, but it doesn’t stop there, and [I] want to work on perfecting harder Vaults,” he said.

The accolades haven’t stopped for the 20-year-old who is also ranked equal third in the World Cup standings in the Floor aparatus. Remkes was recently announced as an ambassador for the 2018 Commonwealth Games on the Gold Coast.

When asked about the role, Remkes said; “I feel so blessed for this opportunity, as it’s a big role being an Ambassador for your sport and country!”

“It gives us a chance to make Gymnastics more recognized in Australia and around the world.”

The forthcoming Australian Gymnastics Championships in Melbourne gives Remkes the chance to work on new skills to add to his repertoire, but time will tell whether they will be ready for competition.

Remkes said preparing alongside his fellow gymnasts at the MAG National Centre of Excellence, based at the Australian Institute of Sport in Canberra, has had an encouraging affect on his drive and motivation for the National Championships.

“Being able to train with other gymnasts makes training better both physically and mentally, as the support of other athletes as well has been a big motivation.”

Sacrifice plays a big part in being a full time athlete, and Remkes highlights how time is something that had to be prioritised.

“Competing at an international level involves nonstop training, with almost 30 hours a week between morning and afternoons from Mondays to Saturdays dedicated solely to practice.”

A frenetic day for Chris starts with an early wake up, light breakfast and a morning training session. After that he’ll relax for a few hours before preparing for afternoon training at 3.30pm, with a mixture of recovery, or coaching at the Canberra City Gymnastics Club on a casual basis later at night.

Don’t miss your chance to catch Chris live in action at the 2017 Australian Gymnastics Championships, running from May 22 to Jun 4 at Melbourne's Hisense Arena – secure your seats now!

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